And while the stevedores reload their strategy, the Port of Belize is for sale. You probably remember that 3 years ago in January of 2012, the Ashcroft Alliance declared that the port was in receivership - and took it over. Now, three years later, CEO Tux Vasquez is still the receiver - and he says his job is to improve the asset so that it can be sold. Today he discussed with us the investments that have been made and what happens next:...
Arturo "Tux" Vasquez, CEO - Port of Belize Limited
"We have invested to date about six and a half to seven million dollars and it has been mainly in heavy equipment, infrastructure, in staffing, but the majority has gone in heavy equipment. Port operations are measured by the amount of containers we moved per hour and without proper equipment, you could be very well down to 7-9-10 containers per hour. We have brought that up to 17 containers per hour, sometimes a bit more, but those are averages that are acceptable in moving containers."
Jules Vasquez
"Now, all these improvements are with a view to making it prime for sale?"
Arturo "Tux" Vasquez
"Obviously, as it becomes better, it can actually attract a better price as well."
Jules Vasquez
"Are there offers for sale being made? The port is up for sale and people are trying to buy it?"
Arturo "Tux" Vasquez
"Yes, the port is for sale, but it's not just for sale, I wouldn't say not to anybody, but the idea of selling the Port of Belize for me, my view as the receiver is not just selling it to somebody who has the money to pay for it. This port has to be sold where you know that if you are passing it on to a new owner, it has to be somebody who has port expertise and can actually improve the port as it is. So, for me as the receiver, it's not just to recover the funds, but also to make sure that it's sold to an entity that can add value to this operation. But we have had people interested yes. There are people who have been interested and we have entertained a few of them, but we have not gotten to any point of any serious investor who has actually came into the port to look into details. We have made our doors open to people who are interested, we have given tours, we have talked about it, we have talked about the operations of the port, we have provided some very minimal information. But we haven't got to a point with any party that actually wants to get into due diligence and all that. But, that shouldn't be too far in the future. We are talking to a couple of people, international people. If they are interested, we may get to that point. I do think that investors who invest in the port, also have quite a bit of information or dealings with the government because selling the port would not only be up to me. Yes, I can sell, but it would have to be in conjunction with the government. It is the primary port and the government would also have to be sort of in agreement to say... I would not be doing this without keeping the government informed as to how I am moving."
We'll try to get comment from government in the days to come.
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